Pāhoa A Kīlauea, Hawaii, USA story
Natural Disasters
On June 27, 2014, new fissures erupted just east of Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō crater and lava advanced rapidly to the east. By late October, lava had advanced 20 km toward Pāhoa. The flow eventually stalled 1,800 feet (550 m) from the Pahoa police and fire stations. It also reached within 500 feet (150 m) of Pāhoa’s main street before stopping. By mid-December, the lava flow threatened the Pāhoa Marketplace shopping center but no damage was done there. The entire flow extended 13.5 miles (21.7 km).
Landsat imagery shows this flow as ragged, dark lines protruding from the main lava flows around Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō. An image from the European Space Agency’s Sentinel-2 satellite shows the lava flow and Pāhoa in slightly higher resolution and makes it clear just how closely the flow approached the community.
Location
Sep. 5, 2013, Landsat 8 (path/row 62/47) — Pāhoa, HI, USA
Sep. 24, 2014, Landsat 8 (path/row 62/47) — Pāhoa, HI, USA
Oct. 13, 2015, Landsat 8 (path/row 62/47) — Pāhoa, HI, USA
Feb. 26, 2019, Landsat 8 (path/row 62/47) — Pāhoa, HI, USA
Kīlauea, Hawaii, USA Additional Imagery & Stories
2018 Eruption
On April 30, 2018, rapid changes in the East Rift Zone were detected. The Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō crater floor collapsed. Ground deformation toward the east indicat...
End of the Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō Eruption
Meanwhile, at the summit of Kīlauea, the Halema‘uma‘u crater and surrounding caldera floor subsided throughout the summer of 2018. Kīlauea has somethi...
Kalapana
The Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō eruption took a destructive turn in March 1990. Breakouts from a lava tube spread lava into the Kalapana community. Images show the enti...
Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō
The 2018 eruption was part of an ongoing eruption sequence that started on January 3, 1983, with fissures breaking out along the East Rift Zone. Over ...